Types of Peripheral Neuropathy - Inflammatory

Cryoglobulinemia (which literally means "cold antibody in the blood") refers to chemical properties of the antibodies that cause this disease. Cryoglobulins are antibodies that precipitate, or clump together, under cold conditions. People with cryoglobulinemia experience the characteristic symptoms - paleness, numbness, and pain in extremities, bleeding under the skin, and joint pain -- when exposed to cold weather.

There are several different types of cryoglobulins; each type is associated with different diseases and disorders, which may include cancer involving white blood cells, infections, autoimmune disorders, rheumatic diseases, vasculitis, kidney disease, hepatitis C virus infection, and peripheral neuropathy. More than 90% of people with cryoglobulinemia also have a hepatitis C infection. Hepatitis C virus infection is primarily acquired by needle sharing and tainted blood products, and only rarely transmitted sexually. Treatment of the underlying hepatitis C virus infection may be an effective therapy for an associated peripheral neuropathy.